Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Travel Photography in Peru - Roasting coffee beans...

This woman is roasting coffee beans to perfection. The hot beans are cooled and ground into the most delicious tasting coffee ever, move over Starbucks! I enjoyed tasting the coffee, but watching her roast the beans Peruvian style was a real treat.  The rich aroma of roasted beans filled the room as she stirred the pot.

I chose Nik Silver Efex Pro to convert the image to a more classic black and white photograph. Removing the color creates a timeless look, and allows the subject to clearly stand out in the composition. I like how the smoke from the roasting beans surrounds her hand. When I look at this photo, I feel like I'm still in her kitchen, taking in the wonderful sights, sounds and scents of coffee made the old fashioned way.

Nik Silver Efex Pro allows the photographer a lot of flexibility over the presentation of the image. Control Points can be added to make selective adjustments, and the presets provide a springboard of ideas as starting points. You can use code DSANDIDGE for a promotional code for any Nik Software product that will enhance your creativity and photography.

Another way to work with this idea is to add a slight amount of color added back, this can be accomplished by reducing the opacity of the black and white layer for a different look. Have fun working with your photos in a variety of ways! ~ Deb